The Belle of Notre Dame
by FrauThenardier
Summary: Hunchback of Notre Dame Not many people know this, but there was a girl growing up in the belltower of Notre Dame alongside the mysterious bellringer. Josafine's story was lost to history. Until now.
1. The Gossips of Paris

_The Belle of Notre Dame_

Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunchback of Notre Dame or any of its characters. They belong to Victor Hugo, and the movie belongs to Walt Disney. I only own Josafine (or Amelie) La Chantefleurie.

Chapter One: The Gossips of Paris

"About eighteen or so years back, two years after Judge Claude Frollo adopted the bell ringer, Quasimodo, and hid him in the bell tower; he sent out a thousand men to attack the gypsies living in Paris at the time. The gypsies fled, but in their haste left behind two of the triplets they had stolen from a woman on the outskirts of Paris a month before."

" Of course I knew that, Mahiette. Beautiful little girls, they were. One had olive skin, black hair, and green eyes; one was an ivory-pale brunette with huge brown eyes; and one was a rosy, blue-eyed, blonde angel."

The black-haired one was the one the gypsies remembered, I know, and the blonde was taken in by a group of street gamins. But nobody knows what happened to the brunette."

"Nobody USED to know, Oudarde. But it was recently discovered that she is, in fact, alive. Tell us, Mahiette, what do you know about her?"

"Well, Gervaise, for starters, we certainly can't keep calling her 'the brunette.' She does have a name, you know."

"They call her Josafine."

_Ok, just so you know, they are introduced in this fashion: Mahiette, Gervaise, Oudarde. They narrate Josafine's story, as Clopin narrated Quasi's, except with gossip instead of puppets. Like Clopin, they will show up quite a few times in this story, so be warned!_


	2. Paquette La Chantefleurie

Chapter 2: Paquette La Chantefleurie

"Let us start this story from the very beginning, on the outskirts of Paris, when I was eighteen…." Mahiette began.

Flashback…..

Paquette sat in front of her mirror in her cottage, brushing her long, red curls. She hummed gently to herself, gazing at her mirror. Her humming soon turned into a song.

**Paquette: How strange! This feeling that my life's begun at last! This change! Can people really fall in love so fast? What's the matter with you, Paquette? Have you been too much on your own? So many things unclear. So many things unknown. In my life, there are so many questions and answers that somehow seem wrong. In my life, there are times when I catch in the silence the sigh of a faraway song. And it sings of a world that I long to see, out of reach, just a whisper away, waiting for me! Does he know I'm alive? Do I know if he's real? Did he see what I saw? Does he feel what I feel? In my life, I'm no longer alone, now the love in my life is so near. Find me now. Find me here.**

Paquette stood up and contemplated all that had happened recently. She was a lovely girl, petite with long, curly red hair, huge dark eyes, blessed with a wonderful singing voice, and she was easily the sweetest woman in the village. But, the neighbors considered her odd. Ever since her parents died the year before, she had kept to herself, barely talking to anyone, just keeping to her needle, and her garden, and her books. The only person who had ever wanted anything to do with her was a judge who was also a minister at Notre Dame: Claude Frollo. Ugh! How he unnerved her with his cruel smile, his sinister laugh, his creepy way of appearing to always be watching you. How he shocked her with his wicked mistreatment of gypsies. Actually, the gypsies were her cause for happiness lately. A caravan of them had recently come to Paris. She'd seen them herself when she had been out shopping the day before. And, she had to admit, one had caught her eye. A young man was performing acrobatic tricks in the center of the street. He was tall and olive-skinned, and wore a loose white shirt, a beaded belt, and leather trousers. His green eyes smiled at her, and his black hair and beard shone in the sun. He was young, at most twenty, and he seemed to have the free spirit that Paquette found so attractive in a man. Oh, how she regretted not knowing his name!

Well, she would find out soon enough! She was headed straight for the market to buy some groceries. Surely she would see him somewhere in the street somewhere between her cottage and the crowded Paris marketplace! With that thought in her mind, Paquette tied her apron over her green dress, wrapped her shawl around her head, picked up her basket, and skipped out of the house in the direction of the marketplace.

Paquette was only a couple of streets from the marketplace when she ran into the last person she wanted to see that day: Claude Frollo. Paquette groaned, and attempted to dodge him. Unfortunately for Paquette, in ducking under a curtain which covered a fruit cart, all she succeeded in doing was knocking over a barrel of apples, causing a huge commotion, which led to everybody looking right at the comical girl with the barrel haphazardly over her body-including Frollo! "Nice one, Chantefleurie." She thought as she lifted off the barrel. "For all I know, HE might have been there, laughing at me like everybody else!" Her thoughts were interrupted by a certain sinister voice. "Mademoiselle La Chantefleurie. What a pleasant surprise." "Good morning, Judge Frollo," Paquette replied, and tried to get away again. But Frollo had other plans. "Shopping again, are we? It seems to me that an orphan girl who lives alone, such as yourself, wouldn't need this many provisions." "If you MUST know, yesterday on my way home I ran into a group of hungry-looking little street urchins. I felt so sorry for them that I gave them half of my vegetables and fruits, most of my meat, and my entire loaf of bread." Frollo was not convinced, even though this was true. "I believe, Paquette, that you are out here to satisfy a different kind of hunger." Paquette grew even more annoyed. Did this man know everything? Frollo went on. "I believe I saw you yesterday, staring at a certain gypsy boy, perhaps? One doing licentious little tricks in the market square? You should avoid those gypsies, you know. They are evil beings, spawns of Satan! They will harm you, young Mademoiselle. You should beware." Paquette sighed. She knew perfectly well what he meant. He wanted to be with her. When she was a little girl and he was a student at the Torchi College, he often told her parents how sweet and adorable their daughter was. When she hit puberty, he began to feel infatuation for Paquette, and tried to make marriage settlements with her parents. Now, he was always following her around, trying to get her to like him. "Thank you, your Honor. Now I must be going." And with that, she was off.

Finally, in the square, Paquette saw him! The man was this time juggling for a group of delighted children. She became so enrapt in watching him, that she had no idea what was going on behind her. A cart had crashed into a barn at a nearby farm, and the animals were stampeding through the city streets. She was watching the man so closely, that she didn't notice the bull barreling right at her. Suddenly, she was pushed to the side of the road! When she finally opened her eyes after the shock, who should be on top of her but the handsome gypsy. He helped her to her feet and handed her the basket. "What were you thinking, Miss? You could have been trampled to death! If I hadn't been here, who knows what may have happened?" He did care! Paquette responded "I fully understand that, Sir. Thank you for saving my life." The gypsy was flattered that this civilian girl had actually bothered to thank him. He went on. "Aw, it was nothing, I've seen you around these parts recently. Do you come here often?" "Yes, "she replied, "I love your acrobatic stunts." "You do? Well come here around this time of day whenever you want. I'm always around here performing for a few sous." He walked off. Paquette called after him. "My name is Paquette La Chantefleurie!"

"Roderigo at your service!" 

That night at the gypsy encampment, Roderigo's friends noticed that he was acting strangely. From his short descriptions, they could tell it was about a local girl. They laughed at their friend's amorous feelings. Roderigo suddenly burst into song.

**Roderigo: I've never had this feeling before. She gives me shakes and shivers I can't ignore and I feel that there's more now than just running free.**

Little did Roderigo know that Paquette was thinking about him, too. She was holding her pet rabbit and singing to it of her feelings.

**Paquette: I've never felt my heart beat so fast! I'm thinking of him first and of myself last and how happy I want him to be.**

They both began, unbeknownst to each other, to overlap in song.

**Roderigo: It's amazing, someone in my life just might be loving me! I didn't know that I could feel this way!**

**Paquette: It's crazy, something in my life is better than a dream! I didn't know that I could feel this way!**

**Roderigo: She makes me warm and happy inside!**

**Paquette: He smiles and I get dizzy and starry-eyed! **

**Both : All these feelings I've felt have me asking ….**

**Paquette: Can this be Love?Roderigo: Can this be Love?**

**Paquette: It's crazy-**

**Both: I can hardly speak whenever he/she says "Hi!"**

**Paquette: I didn't know that I could feel….**

**Roderigo: I never dreamed that I could feel…**

**Both: I didn't know that I could feel this way.**

And as Paquette slipped between her bed sheets, she knew that she and Roderigo would be very good friends.

Flashback ends…..

"And they became friends. That and more." Said Mahiette.

Flashback…….

Months later, Paquette was happily primping again. This time she had a good reason. Roderigo was coming tonight! He had also mentioned something about a surprise for her. He was so sweet that way! Since their first meeting, the two had indeed fallen madly in love with each other. Smiling, she chose her favorite outfit to wear, which was also very practical, as she was going to be cooking dinner for the two of them. Roderigo loved her roast chicken with sage and rosemary stuffing. She was also planning to make a salad and some fried potatoes and onions, and she had a pudding in the oven. Yes, it would be best to wear the green dress she wore around the house, and her pretty white apron for a decorative effect. It was so wonderful to have some company aside from her little brown rabbit. Speaking of which, where was she?

"Chou-chou, why can't you behave yourself?" Paquette scolded. It had taken her ages to find the little rabbit, who had gotten into her garden and eaten half of her lettuce plot. "You naughty girl. Now it will take me ages to get dinner finished!" And it did. She was just finally taking her chicken out of the oven when she heard a loud "Hello, Darling!" coming from her window. There was Roderigo, in a handsome purple vest and hat, with matching pants. They happily kissed, truly excited to see each other. Paquette then led her lover to the table, and began to serve dinner, as in her mind, she burst into song.

**Paquette: Can you feel the love tonight? The peace the evening brings? The world for once in perfect harmony with all its living things.**

As they ate, they both were thinking their own separate thoughts about each other.

**Roderigo: So many things to tell her, but how to make her see the extent of my love? Impossible! She's had better men than me!**

**Paquette: He's holding back, he's hiding. But what? I can't decide. Why won't he be the king I know he is? The king I see inside?**

Finally, they were finished with dinner, and Roderigo led Paquette to a moonlit clearing in the forest.

**Both: Can you feel the love tonight? The peace the evening brings? The world for once in perfect harmony with all its living things!**

The two next began whirling around in the forest in a happy waltz.

**Both: Can you feel the love tonight? You needn't look too far. Stealing through the night's uncertainties, LOVE IS WHERE WE ARE!!!**

**Paquette: And if he feels the love tonight, in the way I do…..**

**Roderigo: It's enough for this restless wanderer….**

**Both: Just to be with you.**

As they sat down under the stars, Paquette felt something being placed in her hand. She looked down and there was a beautiful necklace with an emerald green pendant. "It's beautiful." She murmured. ** "**You like it?" Roderigo stammered. "It was my mother's." Paquette was stunned. "I adore it! I'll never take it off." Roderigo finally found the words to explain his feelings to Paquette. "Mademoiselle La Chantefleurie, I love you more than life itself. Will you marry me?" It was then that they vowed to join their names as one.

Flashback ends…….

"But it was not to be," Mahiette lamented. "Infuriated by Paquette's affections, Frollo had this entire gypsy tribe deported and banned from Paris. But that was not before some…um…THINGS happened…."

Flashback……

It had been a most satisfying day for Claude Frollo. Finally he was rid of that gypsy who was luring his beloved away. Sadly, he remembered the tears falling down Paquette's lovely face as Roderigo was dragged away from her by his guards. Oh well. She would forget about him soon enough. Then she would be his. But yet he wondered how much of a sin his love really was. Standing hatless in his cassock in front of his fireplace, he began to sing a little prayer.

**Frollo: Beata Maria, you know I am a righteous man. Of my virtue I am justly proud. Beata Maria, you know I'm so much purer than the common, vulgar, weak, licentious crowd.**

Frollo gasped. The fire had suddenly formed into an all-too-accurate replica of Paquette! She was dancing for him in a most provocative manner.

**Frollo: Then tell me, Maria, why I see her dancing there. Why her smoldering eyes still scorch my soul. I feel her. I see her. The sun caught in her flaming hair is blazing in me out of all control! Like fire! Hellfire! This fire in my skin! This burning desire is turning me to sin! It's not my fault! I'm not to blame! It's that La Chantefleurie witch who set this flame! It's not my fault if in God's plan He made the Devil so much stronger than a man! Protect me, Maria! Don't let this siren cast her spell! Don't let her fire sear my flesh and bone! Destroy Chantefleurie, and let her taste the fires of Hell! Or else let her be mine and mine alone!**

Frollo was interrupted by a knock on his door and Paquette vanished. A guard came in. "Minister Frollo. The gypsies have been deported. We'll never hear from them again." "Good work, Captain." But the Captain was not finished. "I have found out some very interesting news about Mademoiselle La Chantefleurie." "What?" "It's all over the town, your honor. The midwife has declared that the girl is pregnant!" "Excellent. Now she will have no choice but to marry me, and soon, or she will lose all the dignity she ever had in this village! Go to her, Captain. Tell her that Claude Frollo has forgiven her mistake and advises her to marry him. I will gladly raise her little mistake as my own flesh and blood, if she will spare herself the dreadful loss of face."

**Frollo: Hellfire! Dark fire! Now, Paquette, it's your turn! Choose me or your pire! Be mine or you will burn! God have mercy on her. God have mercy on me. But she will be mine or she will burn! **

_Song list: In My Life (Les Mis), I Didn't Know That I Could Feel this Way (lady and the Tramp 2) , Can You Feel The Love Tonight?(Lion King), Hellfire (Hunchback of Notre Dame). Yes, Hellfire was originally written for Paquette La Chantefleurie._


	3. Paquette's babies

Chapter Three: Paquette's Babies

Paquette stared at the midwife in total shock. HOW could this have happened? Well, she knew HOW it happened, but seriously, _**HOW**_ did this happen? She and Roderigo had been very careful that nothing would happen. They had not intended for anything like this to happen before the marriage vows had been exchanged. How could Paquette have ended up pregnant?

"How could I have ended up pregnant?" she asked the midwife, shivering in fear and confusion. The midwife sighed. "Darling, you don't have to have this baby if you don't want to. I know some great herbs that I can mix into a potion for just a sou extra. You drink it, and your womb will be rid of the thing." Paquette gasped. This woman actually suggested she KILL her own baby?! What kind of parent would she be if she did that? Besides, this was quite possibly the only thing besides the necklace that she would ever have of Roderigo. That soldier had told her that all her tears were in vain, that she would never see Roderigo again, on that horrible day, two weeks ago. She tried not to think of it. That Claude Frollo! He just took the one happiness she had ever had since her parents died! If she hated him before, she despised him now. But he could never take away Roderigo's child! Besides, she had always wanted a baby of her own.

"No, thank you." Paquette told the midwife. "I will be checking in regularly to see about progress and you will know when my time comes." With that, she left, one hand placed protectively over her still-flat belly, singing to the child in her womb, even though she didn't know if it could hear her yet.

**Paquette: Got nothing to give to you but a prayer that God's gonna see us through. To part with you, more than I can bear, but somebody's gonna love you. Sweet, baby, sweet! This much I know is true. Sleep, baby, sleep, 'cause somebody's gonna love you. Oh, I'm always gonna love you.**

When Paquette reached her cottage, she was met with a not-so-very-pleasant surprise. She walked down her cobblestone path and who should be waiting at the door but the very soldier who had forcibly ripped her true love away from her. "What do you want?" she snapped. "Haven't you made my life empty enough? Do you think I could be MORE miserable than I am now?" The soldier smiled evilly. "You might not want to cross me, Mademoiselle La Chantefleurie. If I were you, I'd think of my baby before saying anything else." Paquette was stunned. "How did you…" "You actually thought it was going to remain a secret? Oh no, Mademoiselle La Chantefleurie, everybody knows. It's all over the town. You are having an illegitimate child. You are quickly losing all status you have ever enjoyed. Soon, people will see you as no more than a common street girl. But, luckily, Claude Frollo has taken pity on you in your wretched state. If you will become his wife for all eternity until death do you part, he will raise your child as his own. If not, well, then you had best leave Paris. Nobody will ever accept you now." Paquette, horrified at the prospect of marrying the man who had taken away her true love, somehow found her voice. "Well, Captain, tell his Honor this! I refuse his offer! I would never marry him even if he was the only man left on Earth, and I will not be so cowardly as to leave Paris! In fact, I am PROUD to be having my beloved Roderigo's baby! He or she will grow up knowing what an amazing man his or her father was, and one day they will help give Frollo what he deserves for this!" The Captain, hearing this, slapped her, causing her to fall to the ground, and left, muttering about how women should know their place. When Paquette finally got up again, she swore to herself that she would live by the words she had uttered.

Flashback ends……

"And so, Paquette bided her time until the baby was born. And little did she know she was in for a huge surprise."

Flashback……

Paquette woke up one winter's morning to hard kicking from inside her stomach. At first, she thought she was still dreaming. Then she remembered. Of course! It was the baby! God, you'd think she'd be used to it by now, being six months pregnant already. She patted her stomach, which, much to her surprise was much bigger than it should be at this time. She'd been noticing that lately. "Good morning!" she cooed. "How did you sleep?" By way of response, the baby kicked again. "I'm glad to hear that. I slept well too. I had the most wonderful dream last night!" Another kick resulted. "Oh, it was about your Papa. Yes it's the same one I've had about nine times this month. The one where he escapes that nasty Claude Frollo and comes home. I think it will come true. I mean, after all….."

**Paquette: A dream is a wish your heart makes when you're fast asleep. In dreams you will lose your heartache. Whatever you wish for, you keep. Have faith in your dreams and someday, your rainbow will come shining through. No matter how your heart is grieving, if you keep on believing, the dream that you wish will come true!**

Paquette happily jumped out of bed and began to make it neatly, stepping into her slippers while doing so.

**Paquette: (hums the first two parts of A Dream is a Wish your Heart Makes)  
**

Next, she danced over to her closet and picked out a green flannel dress and a grey knit shawl and laid them on her bed.

**Paquette: (hums the next two lines)**

Now she rushes over two her washstand and splashes water on her face.

**Paquette: (hums the next two lines)**

Finally, she pulls her dress and shawl over her head.

**Paquette: (hums some more, then…) No matter how your heart is grieving if you keep on believing the dream that you wish will come true!**

Paquette strolled into her parlor. "Good morning, Chou-Chou! " The little rabbit nudged Paquette's workbasket with her nose. "You are quite right, I should be getting on with those baby clothes. What would I do without you, you smart little rabbit?" Paquette picked up a blue dress she was making for the baby and began to embroider pink flowers all over it. She was working on a whole blue-and-pink wardrobe for her baby. She also had a pink-and-purple wardrobe and a purple-and-blue wardrobe that she was working on in her basket. The crown jewels in each of these ensembles was a little pair of satin shoes: one pink with purple embroidery, one purple with blue embroidery, and one blue with pink embroidery. Each set also, when finished, would include five nightgowns, two bonnets, six everyday dresses, one fancy dress, a couple of blankets, four pairs of socks, and a stack of diapers (each one having a design on it in the scheme's primary color), but the shoes would be what would get everyone's attention. Instead of spinning, weaving, and dyeing the cloth herself, she had bought it in the marketplace, and she had used special care to make sure no stitch was made out of place. It was easy, really. She WAS the best seamstress in all of Paris. Too bad nobody was buying her creations anymore, or paying her to do their mending. People had been pretty much avoiding her ever since word got out that she was pregnant out of wedlock. Paquette secretly worried about being able to provide for the baby. Oh well. She would figure something out. While she was sewing, she began to think of names for her baby. If it were a boy, that was easy. He would definitely be Roderigo, after his father. For a girl, well….. She had always liked names that began with the letter "A." Like Agnes, after the heroine in her favorite romance novel. Or Amelie- that was such a pretty name! Or maybe Aurore, after Paquette's mother. Yes, those names would do nicely. But there was not time to think about this anymore. Paquette was late for her meeting with the midwife!

Paquette trudged through the snow towards the midwife's cottage. Why did she have to live so far away? All the way to the house, little boys were pelting her with snowballs, local women were giving her dirty looks, and people were screaming personal remarks at her. Finally, she reached the cottage. The midwife was waiting for her at the door.

After a thorough examination, the midwife pronounced the baby in Paquette's womb to be very healthy. But that wasn't all. "Darling," the midwife said, "It looks like you may be having twins!"

Flashback ends…..

"Finally, Paquette's time came, and she delivered substantial proof that she was expecting more than just twins."

Flashback……

Spring was here in Paris. Paquette stood on her front steps in a pretty pink gown, stroking her huge belly and taking it all in. Many animals were giving birth now; even Chou-Chou had given birth to a litter of baby bunnies. And it seemed like Paquette was next. Her belly had swollen to about twice the size it had been a few months ago when she found out that she was having twins. Apparently she was going to need all those sets of clothing after all! The babies had seemed to drop lower into her stomach, and she was having little cramps lately. Suddenly, she felt a long, hard pain cut through her body! The intensity sent her barreling over, screaming. She knew what that meant. She had to; the midwife had described it endlessly. The babies were coming!

The local midwife was sitting down to a cup of tea when she heard loud, frantic knocks on her door. She knew what that meant. Somebody was either having a baby or being attacked and needing somewhere to hide. She got up and answered the door. When she opened it, who did she see but, "Paquette La Chantefleurie? My dear, what in Heaven's name is the…." She knew instantly what was wrong when she saw the puddle forming from under Paquette's skirt. "Paquette, you silly girl! One your age should know better than to wander around the streets in your condition! Why on Earth didn't you send someone????" "Madame," Paquette panted, "I don't exactly have anyone to send here for me. All my family is gone, and it appears to be me against the entire city. Nobody would fetch you for me if I asked. Now please, take me home and get these babies out of me!"

A few hours later, the midwife had helped Paquette hobble back to her cottage and situated her in bed and prepared all the materials for the delivery, and Paquette's contractions were coming closer and closer together. "All right, Sweetie, breathe. Breathe. Keep breathing. Don't stop. You stopped. Breathe again. Keep it up. You're doing great. Breathe." "_**SHUT UP!!!!!!!!!**_"

Many hours later, Paquette did not appear human anymore. Now, she was just one writhing, screaming mass of sheer pain. Experience had taught the midwife that this meant it was time for her to start pushing. "All right, Darling," she instructed. "It's time to start pushing!" "I can't!" whined Paquette. "Yes, you can, now do it! Push!" "AAAHHHHHH!!!!!" "Push again!" "AAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!" "One more!" "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!" The crying of a child was heard, and the midwife held up a beautiful baby. The baby looked exactly like an infant version of Roderigo. It had flawless olive skin, perfect dark hair, and impeccable green eyes. The only thing that resembled Paquette was the size of those eyes- they were humongous. Paquette was awestruck. "Is it a boy or a girl?" "It's a girl!" the midwife proclaimed.

The next delivery, however, was very hard on Paquette. The pains seemed to be stronger than the last ones, and the baby did not come out very quickly. Finally, weak crying was heard, and the midwife held up an extremely small, only about four pounds fifteen, baby. The midwife told Paquette that this one was a girl, too, and lucky to be alive. This baby looked almost exactly like Paquette, except, where Paquette's hair was red and curly, the baby's was straight and brown. Paquette was just about to take the babies out of the midwife's arms and into her own, when the midwife stopped short. "I don't think we're through here." "What?" "What I mean is, there is another baby in there."

Less than a minute after this was said, a third and final baby girl was born. This one was blonde with blue eyes and a slightly rosy complexion. Now, the only thing remaining was to name them. Paquette decided that she would call the black-haired girl Agnes, because the character of Agnes in her favorite romance novel was very radiant and full of life, both things she could tell her daughter was going to be. The brunette's name was going to be Amelie, because to Paquette, the name described a pretty, small person. Finally, the blonde was going to be Aurore because she looked exactly like Paquette's mother would have looked as a baby. Holding her babies close, she began to sing them to sleep.

**Paquette: I've known you a life and a day, but we've just begun. Come with me, I'll show you the way. We'll soon live free in the sun. Though we danced and sang through the night, now those nights are none. Soon there'll come a new morning light when we'll all laugh in the sun. Though the fates have torn us apart and we don't know how or when, from now on I know in my heart, we'll be together again! I've known you a life and a day, but we've just begun! Come with me I'll show you the way! We'll soon live free in the sun! We'll soon live free in the sun!**

Flashback ends……

_Song list: Somebody's Gonna Love You (The Color Purple), A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes (Cinderella), Lullaby (some 80's version of Anastasia I saw when I was 6)_


End file.
